


I Have Time

by AceTrainerHope



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Ambiguous Relationship, Angst, Gen, One Shot, Post-Canon, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-04
Updated: 2018-01-04
Packaged: 2019-02-28 09:07:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,680
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13268226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceTrainerHope/pseuds/AceTrainerHope
Summary: On a sleepless night, Corrin takes a walk through the woods.





	I Have Time

_**The lake sort of knows me...** _

The forest is always so peaceful this time of night. So quiet, save for the soft chirping of crickets or the rustling of leaves whenever a faint breeze passes by. The evening air carries a chill that lightly prickles at bare skin, but not in an unpleasant way. It’s more soothing than it is anything else, like a sip of cold water after a hard day’s work.

Darkness and shadow play tricks on the eyes, making it seem as if the swaying trees are moving of their own accord, reaching out and grabbing for something that isn’t there.

Illusions like that are especially enhanced on nights like tonight, when the full moon offers just enough light to give you false confidence in your ability to see in spite of the dark. Its grayish glow is just as mesmerizing and enchanting as the millions of stars that sprinkle the inky black sea that is the sky. Their beauty is almost indescribable.

On nights like this, Corrin is almost grateful when sleep can’t be found.

The young princess walks alone down an old and worn dirt path that weaves through the woods, savoring the feeling of the cool, soft earth beneath her bare feet.

After many years spent raised in Nohr, her eyes are accustomed to the dark, but there’s a little advantage she has over most Nohrians.

…Well, no.  Not most, but all. And not just Nohrians, either. This is something she shares with no other human, as far as she’s aware.

As she walks, one hand finds its way to the dragonstone hanging from the loose string around her neck, clinking softly against the other pendant resting there. She hadn’t bothered putting on armor or carrying Yato with her. All she wears now, along with the necklace, is a simple black nightgown. It’s sleeveless, and stops just above her ankles.

For anyone who doesn’t know her, Corrin might seem vulnerable dressed like that.

But ‘vulnerable’ is the last thing she could ever be.

_**Was it you who promised time?** _

Her insomnia is nothing new, even after the fighting between Hoshido and Nohr ended. How long had it been since then? Weeks? Months? She’d lost track. After all the coronations and council meetings, the treaties and negotiations, after everything was settled and over with, the days that followed took on a predictable consistency. They all started to blur together, each almost the exact same as the last.

Her siblings were constantly worried about her, despite Corrin’s best efforts to hide her lack of sleep. They wanted to help her, to understand, but if she talked about it with them… Well, for starters, she doesn’t even know what to tell them. How can she describe that hollow, empty feeling in her chest? Or the guilt that plagues her from the choices she’d made, and all the lives that had been lost because of them?

_Especially–_

Corrin’s thoughts, as well as her stroll, are interrupted as the trees around her give way to lakefront. She’d been so lost in thought that she hadn’t even realize it until the dirt and grass beneath her feet were replaced by sand and gravel. She must’ve wandered farther into the forest than usual tonight…

Gazing upon the water’s glassy surface, calm and undisturbed, it’s a perfect mirror of the starry sky above her. She can hardly tell the difference between the reflection and what’s real.

The albino woman stands there and just stares for a while, before walking forward. Each step carries her closer and closer to the water’s edge, until she wades in enough for the refreshing cold to fully submerge her ankles. The ends of her dress just barely skim the surface.

While her soles don’t ache from so much walking, the water still feels so nice on her skin. Her footsteps send ripples gliding through the water, temporarily disrupting the image of the stars and moon. She watches them spread out farther and farther, softly humming an oh-so-familiar tune. Most of it is off-key, but she doesn’t care.

As the hums die down, her gaze eventually drifts up to the night sky. The moon is notably lower than it had been when Corrin first set out. She doesn’t know exactly how long she’s been gone, but it has to be a few hours by now.

She’d love to stay just a little while more, to linger in the natural beauty surrounding her, but… the longer she stays, the more she risks people finding out that she’s gone.

And if her siblings found out…

Well, she doesn’t think they would stop her from going out again, but at the very least they would probably insist that she stop going out _alone_. One of them might even offer to accompany her themselves. She wouldn’t mind that every once in a while, but Corrin doesn’t want to burden anyone else with her problems. There are also times where she actually prefers taking these walks alone. Not always, but occasionally it’s just nicer that way.

She lets out a long and tired sigh, and as she turns to start making her way back–

Corrin freezes.

_**Lead me to a land so green, so she will stay a while...** _

Her crimson eyes widen as they land on the form of a young woman standing a few feet away, right where the forest meets the sandy lakefront. Her long sky-blue hair is tinted indigo by the dark of night. The dress she’s wearing flows elegantly like a white waterfall, accented with azure and gold.

“Azura? Wha-What’re you doing here?” The half-dragon stammers, taken by surprise.

The songstress doesn’t answer, although a wry smile tugs at her lips. Corrin thinks she’s about to counter with the same question, but instead she just takes a step forward, holding out her hand. Her golden yellow eyes almost seem to glow in the moonlight, an unspoken invitation glistening within them.

Corrin returns the gesture with a half-smile of her own, even if she’s a little confused. Sand cakes her wet feet as soon as she leaves the water, but the mildly uncomfortable and itchy feeling of it is easily ignored.

“You didn’t follow me, did you?” She jokes before taking Azura’s hand.

Azura’s smile brightens the tiniest bit more at that as she shakes her head.

She pulls Corrin closer to her, placing the other girl’s hand on her shoulder. She leaves Corrin’s hand there as she wraps her arm loosely around Corrin’s waist. And then, with her other hand, the songstress takes Corrin’s free one, letting their fingers intertwine.

It only takes a moment, but to Corrin it feels like an eternity. A blush creeps up her cheeks, but she doesn’t pull away. This isn’t the first time they’ve done something like this.  

“Azura, you know I’m a terrible dancer,” she complains, only half kidding.

Azura shakes her head again before taking the lead.

_**Please take me there, I’m ready...** _

It starts off slow– so very slow– as Azura carefully shows Corrin each step, one at a time, in order to jog her memory. It starts simple and easy. Left. Back. Right. Forward. Left. Back. Right. Forward. So on and so forth.

And then Azura starts humming a wordless song. One that Corrin’s never heard from her before. The melody matches their steps perfectly, as if it was created just for this dance.

And then… before Corrin knows it, they’re both moving faster and faster, and the melody picks up. Their gaits are still swaying and gentle, but nowhere near as hesitant or lacking in confidence. Azura throws in a few twirls and flourishes, and Corrin tries to do the same.

The half-dragon’s smile widens, and she can’t stop herself from giggling. It feels like it’s been forever since she’s had this much fun.

But eventually Azura’s humming dies down, and their dancing comes to an end as well. The whole thing couldn’t have lasted more than a few minutes; it felt so much longer, and yet, at the same time, nowhere near long enough.

“Do we have to stop?” Corrin wonders with an almost childlike pout in her tone.

Azura nods, but then pulls Corrin in for a tight hug.

Corrin’s taken by surprise, but returns the gesture after a moment. She doesn’t know why, but for some reason she can feel tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes. The answer comes as Azura whispers softly in her ear.

“It’s time to move on, Corrin.”

_**The ship sways, but the heart is steady...** _

Her whole body goes rigid and her smile instantly vanishes. “W-What are you t-talking about?” She stutters, her voice cracking. But she already knows the answer.

Azura slips right out of the embrace, even though Corrin hasn’t let go. Much like the ripples on the water, the illusion is undone. Azura’s form is wispy and ethereal. It explains why Corrin couldn’t feel any warmth coming off of her, why she couldn’t smell that familiar scent of fresh rain and lotus flowers.

A faint blue glow draws Corrin’s attention down to the pendant hanging from her neck, beside her dragonstone. Azura’s pendant. The only thing that had remained after the azure-haired songstress disappeared.

When she looks back up, Azura is gone.

No. That’s not right.

Her ghostly image might have vanished, but she’s not gone.

Because she was never there in the first place.

Corrin remembers now, how long it’s been since the fighting between Hoshido and Nohr ended. A year. Exactly one year. And tonight was the anniversary of Azura’s disappearance. It had been one whole year since that fateful night. The night she wishes she could forget. The night she’s been _trying_ to forget.

But how could she ever, no matter how hard she tried?

Clutching Azura’s still-glowing pendant in one hand, Corrin slides down onto her knees. As they hit the sand, she lets her tears fall as well. It isn’t long before she’s sobbing. A mournful, wailing cry shatters the silent night surrounding her.

_**I have time.**_

**Author's Note:**

> ok, so, I know songfics are generally frowned upon and what not in the fanfiction community, but I figured it would be okay since this one's based on a fairly short song that doesn't have a whole lot of lyrics to begin with.  
> Let me know if you guys think the fic would be better with the lyrics removed, and I'll happily oblige!
> 
> Here's the song; https://soundcloud.com/bradbreeck/wbb-e006-burrito-i-have-time-feat-dia-frampton  
> some of you will probably recognize it from a certain cartoon network show :p
> 
> This is probably a given, but I don't own nor claim to own the song. The lyrics are by Daniel Chong, the music is by Brad Breeck, and the song itself is performed by Dia Frampton.
> 
> Also I left it ambiguous which route this story takes place after, Birthright or Conquest, 'cause I didn't think it really mattered either way.


End file.
